IOI Corp reshuffles board as Lee Yeow Seng focuses on IOI Properties REIT listing

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IOI Corp reshuffles board

Highlights

Lee Yeow Seng resigns as an IOI Corp director to focus on the IOI Properties REIT listing on Bursa Malaysia on 25 Nov.
Datuk Yeo How appointed as an independent non-executive director of IOI Corp, marking a board reshuffle as strategic priorities shift.
IOI Corp shares closed down 2.04% at RM4.33 on Friday, with a market capitalisation of RM27.21 billion, following the leadership change announcement.

This article was translated from the original. Read the original version by our correspondent here.

Focus on IOI Properties’ strategy

As reported by The Edge Malaysia, citing a Bursa Malaysia filing, Yeow Seng resigned as a non-independent and non-executive director of IOI Corp with immediate effect. IOI Corp also announced the appointment of Datuk Yeo How, an independent non-executive director of IOI Properties, as an independent non-executive director of IOI Corp, effective Friday.

The company said the decision would allow Yeow Seng to focus fully on his leadership responsibilities and IOI Properties’ strategic priorities, particularly given the group’s significant presence in Singapore. He also serves as executive chairman of the IOIPG Malaysia Real Estate Investment Trust, which is scheduled to be listed on Bursa Malaysia on 25 Nov.

Yeow Seng, 47, has served on the IOI Corp board since June 2008. At IOI Properties, he joined the board in February 2013, then served as chief executive officer from 2014 to 2020, was appointed executive vice-chairman in 2020, and returned as group chief executive officer in July 2023.

Implications for the group and shareholders

The change comes amid the Lee family’s ownership structure, which continues to exert significant influence over both companies. His brother, Datuk Lee Yeow Chor, is IOI Corp’s group managing director and chief executive officer, while the two brothers are considered controlling shareholders of IOI Corp through Progressive Holdings Sdn Bhd, with a 49.8% stake, and of IOI Properties through Vertical Capacity Sdn Bhd, with a 65.7% stake.

For investors, the move signals a clearer separation of focus between the group’s plantation operations and property arm as IOI Properties proceeds with its new REIT listing. IOI Corp shares closed down nine sen, or 2.04%, at RM4.33 on Friday, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM27.21 billion.

In our earlier report on IOI Properties Group’s aggressive expansion in Singapore, we covered the group’s exclusive negotiations to acquire Chijmes and the Capitol Kempinski hotel, as well as its ongoing interest in other prime commercial assets in the central district. We also highlighted how this acquisition strategy is expanding its Singapore portfolio while increasing the need for financing restructuring—including plans for a new private fund to reduce debt and support further growth.

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